


Sole Survivor

by firnae



Series: Fan Fic in Verse [3]
Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Angst, Death, F/M, Free Verse, Near Death, Original Character(s), survivor's guilt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-24
Updated: 2015-09-24
Packaged: 2018-04-23 01:59:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4858859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firnae/pseuds/firnae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>She is alone.</i><br/><i>But she survives.</i><br/>A character study in verse of my colonist, sole survivor Commander Elaena Shepard and her evolution through the events of Mass Effect and relationship with Thane Krios.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sole Survivor

Screams.  
They echo through the recesses of her mind.  
She is running.  
Running to her family, away from harm.  
She is running  
Away from friends and neighbors,  
Away from death.  
She is crying,  
Holding her mother in her arms  
As the life drains out.  
She is surrounded  
By death.  
Flames flicker all around  
As the colony turns to ash.  
She is alone.  
But she survives.

  
It comes out of nowhere.  
The quiet day turns to a massacre  
In the span of  
One  
Breath.  
One  
Heartbeat.  
An eruption from the ground  
Sends soldiers flying,  
The battle cry of the colossal beast  
The only sound for miles.  
She watches  
As her comrades are slaughtered.  
She feels the need to help,  
To save them all.  
But she can’t.  
She listens  
To the dying sounds of her squadron.  
She is alone.  
But she survives.

  
She is running  
From ghosts.  
Her past is a shadow  
That haunts her every move,  
Every choice,  
Every decision.  
She pushes and pushes  
The memories back.  
She fills her mind with the mission,  
The objective,  
The greater purpose.  
But faces filter through--  
Friends and family,  
Soldiers  
Lost in the never ending war.  
She feels alone.  
But she survives.

  
She falls in love.  
She has never allowed herself  
These feelings.  
_Focus on the mission._  
_Focus on the goal._  
_Do not become distracted._  
She finds solace  
In his company,  
In their conversations.  
They are so different,  
And they are the same.  
They are both alone.  
But they both survive.

  
She is at the end.  
So much death,  
So much loss  
Has followed in her wake.  
She has so many regrets.  
So many nightmares.  
She had a moment of happiness,  
A beacon of light  
That woke her up.  
And she watched  
As the light  
Flickered  
Out.  
Another to die in her arms.  
Another she could not save.  
A love lost to the tide.  
She swears  
Not another life will be lost.  
But it is not something  
She can control.

  
She stands  
In the epicenter of destruction.  
She runs.  
She fights.  
She throws herself into the fire  
To finally end the battle.  
The pain  
Overtakes all her senses.  
She feels herself falling apart,  
But she endures.

  
A choice.  
She is at a crossroads.  
She has the choice  
To save the world.  
To avenge the lives of the lost.  
She is ready  
To lay down her life.  
And she does.

  
She hears  
The rush of waves.  
Feels the foam of the sea  
Brush her fingertips.  
She opens her eyes  
And is blinded by the light.  
She sees a familiar figure  
Standing far away  
On an unfocused shore.  
She hears a familiar voice,  
Faint and ethereal.  
_Siha._  
_Your life is not yet over._  
_I will wait for you._

  
The sound of waves are replaced  
With the crackle of fire.  
The smell of smoke  
Hangs in the air.  
She takes a deep breath  
And the pain returns.  
She is broken,  
But she is so very much  
Alive.  
She is Commander Shepard  
And she is alone,  
But she survives.


End file.
